Sing soulful Jazz like Ella Fitzgerald. Win that Rap Battle like Drake or Nicky Minaj. Spice up that tune with your Beatboxing skills like Beardyman. Vocalize Blues like Etta James or Ray Charles. Belt “Let it go” or “Fabulous” like Musical star Idina Menzel. Make your voice pop like Adele or Taylor Swift. Sing about “All the single ladies” in formation like Beyoncé. Or bring out your big Opera voice like Luciano Pavarotti or Maria Callas.

Whether you’ve never used your singing voice outside your shower before or you want to improve your skills and perfect your technique, whether your goal is to sing along with your favorite song in the privacy of your home, serenade a loved one, record your own music, impress at Karaoke, sing in a band or perform on a big stage or on TV: you just took the first step toward building your voice. You will perfect your singing skills in no time.

Here is how:

Choose your Style

From Pop to Death Metal, from Funk to Opera, from Blues to Beatboxing – your voice is the most unique and versatile “natural instrument”. Singing is fun! It releases endorphins that give you a natural high as you bring out your creativity. Now decide which genre you want to start with: Alternative and Avant-garde, Beatboxing, Big Band, Blues, Bolero, Cabaret, Contemporary R&B, Country Rock, Dance and Electronic, Flamenco, Folk, Funk, Gospel, Hip Hop, Jazz, Neo Soul, Opera, Pop, Rap, Reggae, Rhythm & Blues, Rock, Soul, UK Garage or Yodeling? There are many styles to choose from and many singers and vocalists end up mastering multiple styles or creating their own. Start by picking the one you like the most, perhaps based on songs you like to listen to, and focus on that genre of music as you are taking your first exciting steps as a singer. Picking a style or specific song will be highly motivating and fun and is most effective to get you started. And, chances are, you sang this song “a thousand times” already anyway. Hello?!

Set your Goal

Did you know that you are dramatically more likely to achieve your goal if you take a moment to get clarity on what exactly you like to achieve and what your motivation is? Makes sense, right? So let’s do exactly that. Now that you know which genre or style you are most interested think about your motivation for building your voice: do you want to sing in your bathtub or impress your friends at Karaoke? Maybe you want to build on your musical talent and work on your voice to pursue a career in singing? Are you preparing for singing a song at your friend’s wedding or are you fine-tuning your performance for that audition? Are you applying for “The Voice” or “American Idol” and want to win over Christina Aguilera or Simon Cowell this season? Are you planning to creating and record your own music? Do you have a solo performance coming up or are you building your voice as part of a band or chorus?
No matter how small or large your immediate singing goal might be. It is most important to keep it as concrete and achievable as possible. Oh, and don’t forget to celebrate your successes as you take your journey and meet your singing goal.

Connect with a Teacher

Sure, you can sing along with that Youtube video or watch recorded voice and singing tutorials somewhere. However, those aren’t personalized and can hence become rather frustrating very quickly: you won’t make much progress, you get stuck or you give up entirely. The most effective and fun way for beginners to build their singing voice is to learn from a great teacher in one-on-one sessions.
“Behind every player’s success is a great coach” is what they say. And that applies to learning to sing as well. Based on your individual goals, your preferred genre and style, your personal vocal coach supports you and puts you on the best learning path so you will start singing with great joy and confidence after only a few sessions. You don’t have to be able to read music.
Savvy singing teachers are great artists and experts in their field, they are vetted by their communities of happy singing students, they are really affordable, and you can connect with them anytime from the convenience of your home via live video.

Here are five featured vocal coaches that specialize in working with beginners like yourself. Pick the one that’s best for you and send them a free message. Say Hi, tell them about your preferred genre and your specific vocal goal you like to achieve next to get the conversation started: